Chuck Vs Tomorrow
by Afficted
Summary: Part X of the Postcard Series. Final arc of this S3 AU! Everything has been leading up to this!
1. Chapter 1

**OK! Welcome back to the final arc in the Postcard series, my Season 3 AU. My goal was to finish this before the end of the actual S3, and it looks like I shall achieve that. **

**Thank all you readers and reviewers, especially those of you who have followed this saga from the beginning. **

**Thanks to my wife and Anon for editing brilliance.**

**I do not own Chuck. **

**OK! Here's my LONG summary of what has transpired previously in the arc. Remember, this is only for people who have already read all the previous arcs, and need a reminder of what happened. If any new readers are here, please read the actual stories, I beg of you!) **

**Part 1 - Chuck Vs. the Postcard:**

**-Chuck's uploading of the new Intersect wreaks havoc on both his body and his relationship with Sarah.**

**-Sarah requests reassignment, but is turned down by Beckman.**

**- Orion agrees to work again for the government. In return, Beckman provides him a house which he gives to Ellie and Devon.**

**- Roan Montgomery is spying on Beckman for Orion.**

**- Team Bartowski learns that the Ring is purging Fulcrum agents.**

**- Dr. Jill Roberts is saved from Ring assassins by Vincent Smith.**

**- Casey confirms that Chuck's Intersect skills only activate when Sarah is physically threatened. **

**- After an emotional discussion, Chuck and Sarah reconcile and agree to a romantic relationship.**

**Part 2 - Chuck Vs. Interdependence**

**- Ellie and Devon notify Chuck that they are moving. Chuck and Sarah take over the apartment.**

**- Chuck and Sarah discover that all surveillance has been removed from the apartment.**

**- Jill and Vincent are on the run, and plan to take down the Ring. They intend to get help.**

**- Casey has another encounter with his old Sensei, which causes him to reevaluate his working relationships.**

**- Chuck problem-solves how to have safe sex with Sarah.**

**Part 3 - Chuck Vs. Systematic Desensitization:**

**- Casey has a difficult time adjusting to Chuck and Sarah's behavior, or lack thereof.**

**- TB is sent on a mission to steal a cellular phone from a possible ex-Fulcrum agent, requiring Sarah's seduction skills.**

**- Chuck discovers a new Intersect wrinkle which once again threatens his relationship with Sarah.**

**Part 4 - Chuck Vs. the First Handler:**

**-Roan reports to Orion, having spied on TB during Systematic Desensitization.**

**-Orion revisits his past with Bryce Larkin.**

**-Orion finds Bryce's hidden plans to the Intersect 2.0.**

**Part 5 - Chuck Vs. the Child-Proof Safety Locks**

**- Chuck is having difficulty with the concept of killing.**

**- Chuck and Sarah go on a dinner date, followed by mini-golf.**

**- A mission at a Ring Warehouse turns out to be just a test of Chuck engineered by Casey and Beckman. Sarah beats Casey up. Casey insists that Chuck has to take responsibility for his choice to update the Intersect, and all that entails.**

**- Sarah tells Chuck she loves him.**

**- Chuck flashes to protect a mysterious intruder.**

**Part 6 - Sarah Vs. the Best Friend**

**- Sarah must fight to keep her sanity when Morgan returns and moves in with her and Chuck.**

**- Mei Ling Cho requests TB's help in taking down a Triad cell.**

**- Smooth Lau kidnaps Morgan, and Sarah must fight for his life.**

**- Jill and Vincent intervene to save Chuck.**

**- Chuck flashes to save Casey.**

**- A traitor is revealed.**

**Part 7 - Chuck Vs. the Strange Bedfellows**

**- Chuck and Orion have a discussion about Chuck's role in the spy community.**

**- Jill and Vincent break into the home of Ellie and Devon. Ellie is injured. Devon learns that Stephen is more than he seems.**

**- Orion unveils the house's security and captures Jill and Vincent.**

**- Chuck learns of Jill's role in the break-in and shows a new side of his personality.**

**- Orion executes Jill.**

**Part 8 – Chuck Vs. the Ghost**

**- Sarah breaks up with Chuck. For less than two minutes.**

**- Chuck and Sarah decide to move in with Ellie and Devon to protect them. Sarah makes a secret deal with Beckman.**

**- To investigate the home of Jill's parents, Chuck uses the aid of Roan Montgomery to craft the perfect disguise.**

**- Chuck and Casey learn that somebody wasn't as dead as they thought.**

**- Casey has to save Chuck from becoming someone he's not.**

**- Roan Montgomery has some trouble.**

**Part 9 – Chuck Vs. the Lies of Omission**

**- Team Bartowski learns that General Beckman has been shot. They meet Beckman's interim replacement, Colonel Gondel.**

- **Chuck and Casey meet Wendell Wagner, an apparent Roan Montgomery "fanboy".**

**- Chuck and Sarah separately learn of a previously unknown connection between two people they know.**

**- Gondel spills information to Chuck about a secret mission of Sarah's.**

**- Chuck has an argument with Sarah and Orion, resulting in rash action.**

**- Chuck meets a former friend of Roan Montgomery and they discuss One-Armed Men in film and television history.**

**- Chuck makes a breakthrough, allowing him to use the Intersect as he hasn't before.**

**- Roan Montgomery confesses.**

**- Chuck and Sarah make up.**

**- Everybody makes plans for tomorrow.**

**Got it? Any questions? Good. Four pages in, and we're finally ready to start on the actual final arc. Let's go!**

**

* * *

**

Damon Harris arrived at his workplace shortly after daybreak. He took a few minutes in the break room to prepare himself an impromptu breakfast of instant oatmeal with raisins and a tall coffee. He brought it all into his office, and set it down, before beginning his regimen of stretches. He fully expected to be at the desk all day, and his back had a tendency to ache if he didn't prepare properly.

Damon considered the room. They had just gotten him one of those new lamps that simulated sunlight. Good thing. The fluorescents had driven him crazy. While spooning the Quakers porridge into his mouth, he enjoyed the pictures of his children. Kathy and Erin would be at the beach today with their mother, but for now, they were able to sleep in. He envied them that. He wished he could be with them, right now, but duty called. Maybe, tomorrow he could take them to one of those new 3D films which were coming out.

Damon stretched one more time, took a big gulp of caffeine, and sat down, while simultaneously flipping the master switch. The bank of computers flickered on, all the monitors igniting their images simultaneously.

Damon cracked his knuckles, and began the day's work.

* * *

"Good morning," said Stephen Bartowski as his children rose up to greet him.

"Hi Stranger!" said his daughter. She stepped up from the breakfast table and gave her father a big hug.

Chuck felt less enthusiastic, but he tried to fake warmth, anyway. His hug was a bit briefer, nevertheless. Sarah and Devon gave their greetings from the table. Chuck knew that his girlfriend was uncomfortable, but she was hiding it well. Captain Awesome, not so much. He and Orion may have come to some sort of understanding, but that didn't mean that Devon had regained his full warmth toward his father-in-law. _Well, _thought Chuck, _Devon's forgiving. He'll feel better toward Dad in time. _

Chuck hoped that he'd be able to do the same.

Ellie offered breakfast, and Stephen promptly sat down and helped himself to her Eggs Benedict. None of the family asked about his business. Chuck mused that there was this unspoken understanding that nobody wanted to know. He was ashamed, because that had included him. Well, now the wool had been pulled, and Chuck could no longer hide in ignorance. It was time he learned _all_ about what his father had been up to. He would do that in private though. There was time.

Chuck's cellular rang. Chuck glanced and saw Casey's face on the front screen. He picked it up, and said, "Hi John. We're eating breakfast. Can we call you back in about a half-hour or do we need to talk now?"

Casey growled, "Do I ever call you when it's not business? Get Walker and go somewhere private, Moron." The connection clicked off.

Chuck winced. He turned to Sarah, and said in a resigned tone, "It's business."

They apologized to the rest of the table, and excused themselves to have the call in private in their room. Chuck's Dad stood up. "I… uh… hope you don't have any pressing engagements today, Charles. We were going to have a talk, remember?"

Chuck looked back at his Dad. "Uh… yeah, Dad. I want to chat too."

Sarah and Chuck made it to their room, then after closing the door, called the Colonel.

As was the norm, Casey didn't make time for pleasantries.

Chuck thought, _Please don't be a mission, please don't be a mission, please don't be a mission._

"We got a mission," said Casey.

"Of course," sighed Chuck. "Of course we do. Why is it than whenever I have an important social thing, a mission always comes up? Hmmm? Never mind the fact that I'm supposed to be covering for my dual life, and me skipping out makes my family and friends suspicious. We can have _weeks_ without a mission, but as soon as I need to do something with my friends and family, _that's_ when the mission comes up."

Chuck saw that Sarah's expression was troubled. As for Casey, there was a pause on the other line, then, "Geez, Bartowski, what crawled up and died in your-"

"Just leave it, Casey," said Chuck. "I was supposed to have an important talk with my Dad today, but that's not going to happen. The mission comes first."

Another pause, until Casey said, "Actually, maybe you can sit this one out, Chuck."

"Excuse me?" said Chuck and Sarah together.

"Gondel wants us to follow-up on a specific lead, bring something back. But it's nothing that Chuck can't flash on later.

"But one of us is always supposed to be with Chuck," protested Sarah, "while the other one keeps an eye on-"

"That was before the Intersect was finally able to work," interrupted Casey. "Bartowski can take care of himself and his family now. It's about time he took a turn on watch duty."

Chuck was shocked. It had been so long since he'd even been given an offer to be left behind, and a mission sounded so much better than having it out with Dad. But….

"Yeah," he said. "That's a good idea, Casey. Thanks."

"Alright," said the Colonel. "Get yourself over to Castle, Walker. I'll get our equipment ready and we'll go."

"On my way." Sarah grabbed her car keys. Her firearm was already in her purse. Sarah and Chuck stopped in the kitchen to apologize to everybody for her abrupt exit. Chuck then walked her out to her car.

"Be careful," he said, hugging her firmly. She kissed him softly.

"Of course. I'll call if I'm going to be late for dinner. Good luck with your Dad. I love you."

"I love you too."

* * *

Chuck got back to the kitchen just in time to swipe the last couple of eggs. His father was looking at him.

Chuck said, "Sarah and John are going to be able to take care of work by themselves. I get a break."

"That's very considerate of them," said the elder Bartowski.

"So… when do you want to talk?"

"You're so mysterious," commented Ellie with a smile. "What do you two need to talk about in private?"

"The incredible birthday present we're getting for you," said Chuck.

"That's right," said Stephen. "It involves chocolate, diamonds, and a zebra."

"Oooh! I've always wanted a zebra!" Ellie winked at her husband.

"Sounds Awesome," said Devon.

Ellie grinned. "OK, I'll mind my own business. Besides, I love a surprise."

"Anyway, Charles," said his father, "why don't you give me a bit to rest and shower, then we'll chat in the cottage. That work?"

Chuck shrugged. "Sure."

* * *

When Sarah walked into the Castle briefing room, she saw Colonel Gondel on the monitor. The old man treated her to that bizarre vacuous smile of his. "Ah! Agent... Er...."

"Walker, Sir." _As if you don't know my name. _Gondel had leaked to Chuck her mission to spy on Orion. His agenda was clearly to cause a rift in the team. She wasn't about to indicate that she was aware of his game, but she was going to be careful. Very careful. So, she gave her most professional expression.

Casey appeared to be having more difficulty staying neutral. He would periodically almost curl his hands into fists, before straightening them out. When her partner spoke, Sarah detected the faintest hint of a strain in his voice. "So, does this information appear fully legit this time? Sir?"

Gondel appeared puzzled at first at the question, then he brightened. "Oh. Yes! I'm very sorry about that, Colonel. I don't know why the initial data was so inaccurate, but the new information is quite clear about the location of this Vincent Smith."

Sarah's body stiffened. _Vincent. Jill._

"Are you sure you wouldn't like a backup team, Colonel Casey?" asked Gondel.

"Thank you Sir, but no" Casey said without hesitation. "Walker and I have experience with Smith. Even when he had full resources, we've been able to handle him ourselves. A large team would have more chance of tipping him off. I don't want him to slip through our fingers."

They weren't mentioning Jill. There must have been a reason for that. Sarah kept silent.

"Very well, then," said Gondel. "Happy hunting!" One last stupid grin, and he signed off.

Casey grunted, and looked back at Sarah, scowling. "Even odds are that bastard is sending us on some kind of wild-goose chase. An hour ago, Vincent was supposedly spotted in North Hollywood. Now, he's apparently on the other side of town. We're being played. Again."

"Why didn't you tell me the mission was to go after Vincent? And is Jill with him?"

"Gondel didn't bring up Jill, and I didn't ask. As I said, Walker, I don't even know if the Vincent sighting is real."

"But if it is, Casey, and Jill is with him, then Chuck is going to want to know!"

"Yeah. I left him out of this on purpose, Walker."

_Oh no. Not again,_ she thought.

Seeing the horrified look on her face, Casey said, "Walker, if it is real, I don't want Bartowski anywhere near that woman. He nearly shot a man in cold blood because of her. When it comes to Roberts, Chuck cannot stay rational, and that will endanger everything. He's out of this one. I'm just glad Bartowski wanted to stay home, so I wouldn't have to come up with an excuse."

Sarah could hear Chuck's words in her mind. _I want her dead. _Maybe his fury had abated. Maybe he wasn't going to lose it again. But, what if he did? If Chuck were to kill, especially from a place of anger, Sarah didn't think he'd ever recover from that.

But to keep this information was to lie to him. Again.

"No," said Sarah. "We're offering Chuck a choice." She pulled out her cellular phone and pressed down on "1".

"WALKER!" Casey yelled.

"This is happening, Casey," she said holding her hand over the receiver. "Demand to have me taken off the team, I don't care. I am not lying to him anymore."

* * *

Chuck picked up the phone, and was about to talk, when he heard Sarah yell, "BACK OFF, CASEY!" Less distinctly, he could here the Colonel swearing.

"Wow," said Chuck, "I leave you two alone for five minutes-"

"Chuck," interrupted Sarah, "It's Vincent. Vincent's been spotted."

Chuck heard Casey unleash a particularly vile profanity, but it hardly registered. _Vincent._

_Jill._

"That's what the mission's about, Chuck," said Sarah. "We're going after him. I don't know if she's with him, but we have to assume she is. I knew you'd want to – CASEY!"

Chuck heard banging, the sounds of a struggle, Sarah and Casey cursing at each other, and then a beep.

"OK," he heard Casey say more clearly, "We're on speaker. We're _all_ talking about this. I don't want you on this mission, Bartowski."

"That's not for you to decide, Casey!" snarled Sarah. Then her voice softened. "It's your choice, Chuck."

Chuck began to say something, but before he could get a sound out, Casey was back again. "No! No, no, no, no, NO! I am in charge, and I have decided. He's too emotionally invested."

Chuck tried again to respond but then Sarah's voice broke in. "Emotionally invested? I'll show you emotionally invest- OW!"

"DON'T PUNCH ME IN THE FACE, YOU BITCH!!!"

"Er… Guys?" Chuck said.

The sounds of struggle and more profanity came back to him.

Chuck stared at the phone in his hands, and shook his head. _Unbelievable. _He yelled into the speaker as loud as he could, "HEY! GUYS!"

There was sudden silence on the other end, and then he heard a male and female voice say in unison, "Yeah?"

"Are you crazy kids willing to _listen_?"

For a second, he heard the arguing start to pick up again. He rode over it. "No no! No. It's time to _listen_."

Silence.

Chuck ran his right hand down his face. "OK. What I want to know is, while you're fighting about this, who is watching Vincent?"

Silence.

"Yeah," Chuck sighed. "I thought so. Let me ask you something, do you need my help to deal with him? Them?"

"No!" Casey immediately said.

Sarah followed with, "I'm sure we can deal with them ourselves, Chuck. But, it being Jill, you should be able to join us." She paused, and he heard the slightest quaver in her voice. "If you want to."

_She wants to protect me. She wants to protect me, but she's given me a choice. _Chuck smiled. _All the anger I feel. Sarah can just push that away._

"Casey, can I talk to Sarah off-speaker for a moment?"

"Oh sure," he heard a growl. "It's not like the bad guy might go anywhere." There was a beep.

"Sarah?"

"I'm here, Chuck."

"Thank you. I just… thank you."

"You're welcome." She paused. "What do you want to do?"

"I want you two to go get them. Just… play nice and be careful, OK? If you think I'm angry at Jill now, I think I'd lose my mind if anything happened to you because of her."

"I won't let it."

"You'd better get going then. Come back to me safe."

"I will." 


	2. Chapter 2

**Hi! **

**Thanks everybody for reading, and I particularly appreciate those who take the time to review. **

**Thanks to my wife and Anon for editing.**

**I own not a fig in the Chuck U.**

* * *

Damon had expected the call, of course, but when it came, he still found himself fighting his nerves. This had been the acid test.

"Sir?" He paused, listened and then smiled, some of his tension dissipating. "I'm very glad to hear that, Sir. No, I agree, this was the easy part. I'm continuing to monitor his transmissions." Another pause. "Yes Sir. Thank you for keeping me posted."

He hung up and breathed out his relief. So far, it was all working.

* * *

Her partner hadn't spoken since they'd left Castle. In most cases, the best course of action would be to let him stew in silence.

But Sarah needed to know.

"Are we going in together, or not? I know you have my back, but if you don't think I have yours, then we need to come to terms or one of us has to go solo. It's too dangerous otherwise."

She glanced at him, but he was still staring at the road, unflinching. She grimaced and bit the bullet.

"I'll go with your terms, Casey."

"You didn't go by them before," he growled.

"No, but you still got what you wanted. Chuck isn't coming. Now we can argue about how compromised and unprofessional I am, or we can move on, and you can make a decision."

Casey finally glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. She knew he was still angry at her. He said, "You've got my back," nevertheless.

"I do," she affirmed.

"Then, this is how it's going to be," he said, bringing his eyes fully back on the road. "If it comes down to us choosing sparring partners, you get Vincent. I get Jill."

She raised an eyebrow. "You think I'm 'emotionally invested' in what happens to Jill?"

"Aren't you?" he asked, without looking at her.

Sarah thought about what Jill had done to Chuck. "It's a good call," she said, to which Casey nodded. "Just one thing," she added, "What if we don't get the choice, and I'm stuck with Jill?" She knew exactly what she would do, but she just wanted to make sure they were on the same page.

"Well, then," said Casey, "Keep her alive if you can. If she resists, blow her fucking brains out. That's what I plan to do."

Sarah could live with that.

* * *

Adele Harrington walked into the office building at quarter of eleven. Adele had risen within the ranks of the NSA for the last ten years. She had been Ring for the last five.

Vincent snapped her picture from the window in the building across the street. He matched her image with the profiles that he had collected. In the event that Adele somehow survived what was to come, he and Orion would have the ability to go after her.

His eyes drifted ever so briefly to the high powered rifle set up next to him. Vincent fully intended that survivors would be the minimum. The extra explosives attached to all exits save the front would ideally ensure that. He merely had to activate them once he made sure that everybody was inside. Maximum advocacy had been required for Orion to allow this. The man currently known as Stephen Bartowski had fretted that if the small amounts of plastique were discovered, the whole operation would be blown, and not in the way desired. As it was, Orion had adamantly refused to use a hidden device internally. Any one of sufficient size to do the job might be found. No, Orion wanted to use one of his Predators. After all, they were his signature.

Vincent wasn't particularly pleased. It wasn't that he doubted the effectiveness of the unmanned system and the Hellfire missiles it deployed. After all, Orion's weapon of choice had been painfully effective against Vincent's people on multiple occasions, if never quite sufficient to destroy Vincent himself.

What troubled Vincent was that he wouldn't be able to activate the Predator without Orion's direct permission. Vincent would need to contact Orion when it was time, and Orion would be the one who would send the drone. Vincent was not bothered by this show of distrust. He was concerned though that Orion was multitasking. Something to do with his family, and it was going to happen at the same time as the operation. Vincent, being a man of focus, was discomfited by this. However, he had gone to a great deal of trouble to obtain Orion's assistance in attacking the Ring. Now that Orion was providing that help, it wasn't for Vincent to question. Only follow.

He watched a middle-aged Air Force officer walk toward the building. Vincent took a picture.

* * *

"You ready?"

Stephen looked up from his work to see his son standing in the cottage doorway.

"Yes. Come on in, Charles. Close the door." Chuck did so.

Stephen had never seen his son so uncomfortable. Even when Chuck had arrived with Sarah to see his father for the first time after a ten-year absence. "Would you like a cola?" Stephen opened a small fridge to reveal a shelf full of canned soda.

"No thanks, Dad."

Stephen pulled one for himself and opened it, his eyes scanning Chuck while he sipped the foam. "So, have you been rehearsing what you plan to say to me?"

"Sarah made a mistake," said Chuck, "but she ultimately owned up to it." Chuck stared at him. "It's your turn now, Dad."

"You're angry that I've been keeping things from you."

"I think you've been doing a lot more than just keeping things from me."

Stephen hadn't expected his boy to be so aggressive. It was unlike him. Something else that he could thank the government for? "And what would that be, Charles?" he asked softly.

"I spoke with Roan Montgomery."

"Oh?" said Stephen, a smile forming in spite of himself. "I told you he wasn't capable of treason."

Chuck looked at him strangely. Was that uncertainty? "You made a mistake, Dad. Roan's guilty. He told me so, himself."

Stephen's smile vanished. "Excuse me?"

Chuck told him about Roan's confession. Stephen listened, but he was having a difficult time comprehending. Roan? How could Roan actually be guilty?

"That's not possible," he said.

"Why, Dad?" asked Chuck. "Why isn't it possible?"

"Because I trusted him," said Stephen under his breath, a pit opening up in his gut. All the things that Roan knew. Everything Stephen had shared with him.

"You…. trusted Roan. You trusted Roan, and…. you never trusted me." Chuck's teeth were gritted. "Maybe you need to think a little bit about who you trust and who you don't."

"Charles-"

"Roan told me that you had him spy on my team. He told me that you had him spy on Beckman."

_No. _Roan had told Chuck? How… how was this happening? Stephen never would have believed it of his friend. But if Roan had done this, what else had he done? What else had he said? And to whom?

* * *

"So what do you think they're really talking about?" asked Ellie.

Devon glanced over at his wife from the stationary bike. "What? They're talking about your birthday present."

"Oh please," she smiled wryly. "Dad has never remembered my birthday, and Chuck, wonderful as he is, isn't much better."

"C'mon, Chuck always gets you a present."

"Sure, but he never gets it more than a week in advance. We're talking two months. They're definitely up to something."

Devon frowned. He hadn't bought the present story either. He was sure that Chuck and his father were discussing something spy-related. He didn't want to know the details. He didn't want Ellie to know the details, either. He tried to think of a good explanation, but he just hated lying to his wife.

The doorbell rang. He looked at Ellie. It was almost Noon on a weekend. He hadn't expected anybody. From her expression, neither did she.

Ellie shrugged, stood up from the couch, and walked to the front door.

"Oh, never mind," she said. "This is them. They've got their secrets. I just wish I could be in on the secrets for once." She opened the door.

* * *

"Dad?" said Chuck. "Tell me the truth. Were you having Roan spy on General Beckman?"

There was no more time to delay. No more time at all. Stephen looked up at his son.

"Charles, the best way for me to explain is to show you. If you'd just come over and sit down, I've got something to show you on my computer."

"Dad, I don't want to look at your computer. I need to hear the truth from you."

"It's not easy to explain, Charles. It'd be so much easier if you'd just look at the computer."

"SCREW THE DAMN COMPUTER, DAD!"

Stephen froze.

He had never known that it was possible that one could think in a whimper. _I hadn't wanted to do this. _There would be no forgiveness. None. He pulled up his sleeve, and typed a command on his arm tech.

"What are you-" Chuck's question was silenced as Stephen's speakers played the voice.

_"I swear to God, Orion, I never wanted to hurt Ellie."_

Chuck's head snapped over and stared at the large monitor on the desk. Orion's camera was top model. The picture was perfect.

_"Chuck was always good to me; even when I was working against him, he always gave me another chance. He let me go. He did. I wanted to help him. Part of me…. It was unrealistic, I know, but part of me wanted there to be another chance for us. And when Ellie recognized me, breaking into her home with a gun, I panicked, because I didn't want Chuck to know that I had done this. I lashed out. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean for her to get hurt. Her or Chuck. Especially Chuck. In spite of everything I have ever done, I love your son."_

"What… what is this?" Chuck asked. He didn't even look at his father. He couldn't take his eyes off the screen.

"Sit down, Chuck. Watch."

Now, his own voice, his own image came back to them. _"You hurt him, Dr. Roberts. All you have ever done is hurt him."_

_"No,_" said a dead woman, "_I saved his life. Don't you understand?"_

Chuck sat down. He was sitting in front of the monitor, riveted. Stephen reached into his pocket and silently pulled out his protection.

_"Orion,"_ said Vincent Smith, _"You can turn us in, or kill us here and dispose of our bodies, but that would be a waste. You know the threat, maybe better than we do. As long as the Ring exists, your family is a target. Use us as a resource to help you take the Ring down. That's why we came to find you. We believe nobody is more capable in this war than you."_

Stephen heard himself say, _"You may be of use."_

Stephen saw his son's reflection in the monitor. He read the word, "No" on Chuck's lips.

Orion pressed the button.

Dr. Jill Roberts said, "And me?" on the screen and then her face disappeared to be replaced by images. Hundreds of images. Thousands of images.

His son immediately seized up, his body jumping. Stephen knew that Chuck's eyes were paralyzed. Stuck to the screen.

Special glasses protecting him, Stephen walked over and laid his hands on his son's shoulders, partly to keep Chuck in place, partly to comfort him.

"Charles, I'm removing this burden from you."

He liked to think that somehow his son could hear him.

**

* * *

**

A/N: Thoughts? I'm particularly looking forward to Wepdiggy's reaction; he loves Orion so.


	3. Chapter 3

**All right! Time for Chapter 3.**

**Thanks to everybody who has read this stuff, and special thanks to the reviewers. (I would absolutely be thrilled to see more of you tell me what you think!)**

**Thanks to my wife and Anon for editing.**

**I do not own Chuck.**

* * *

_Any time now. _

Damon watched the monitors carefully. Everybody was where they should be. All the pieces were in place, and the other player just needed to make the final move.

The opponent was very good, but he was predictable.

Damon waited for the checkmate opportunity.

* * *

Vincent had a feeling. In his profession, he had always followed a path of logical analysis and deduction to meet his goals. Instinct was not normally something to which he subscribed.

But now he had a feeling.

Tearing his eyes away from his rifle and the window, Vincent went to the laptop and typed, "It's time."

He waited two minutes before reading the response, "Acknowledged. Package away." Vincent nodded. He closed up the laptop, and placed it next to the rifle. He then stared through the scope and waited for the arrival, which would be followed by the scurrying.

But then, he had _another_ feeling.

Vincent stood up.

* * *

As he snuck through the hallways, Casey mused on just how much this was not a good setting for a two-person op. Eight floor "abandoned" building. Plenty of places for an ambush. Or, the bad guys would have a variety of ways to sneak past easily. At the very least, they should have had Bartowski in the van giving them remote intelligence. Actually, that was bullshit. This wasn't a three-person op, either. What they needed was a full squad to pour through the place.

But given his current distrust of his superior and the alarming amounts of treason recently encountered, Casey wouldn't have felt safe with... well, with anybody, really. Save Walker and Bartowski. Better to go in as they were. At least this way, they wouldn't be taken down by friendly fire. And with Chuck at home, he wouldn't inadvertently jeopardize the mission or himself by letting his fury toward Roberts get the best of him.

Casey knew that at this moment, Walker was on an alternate floor above or below him. They were on radio silence, of course, until such time as one of them found something. Casey sped through each of his floors, silent in spite of his speed and bulk. All were the same. Except at the seventh, he saw one of the office doors was ajar. He stopped and listened, before carefully approaching. Gun raised, he turned into the room, pointing his weapon.

The room was deserted, save for a rifle on a tripod pointing toward the window, a briefcase, and some files on the floor. Casey spun around. Nobody behind him. He carefully opened the office across the hall. Noth-

"Agh!" Casey's shoulder exploded into agony. The bullet exited through his underarm before burying into the floor, barely missing his foot. Casey's gun fell from his hands, and he collapsed onto his back. His eyes focused through the pain to find Vincent Smith peering down at him through an open panel in the ceiling.

"God damn it!" Casey groaned. "I'd just _recovered_ from being shot in that shoulder!"

Smith let himself down through the panel into the hall, then kicked Casey's gun away. "I know," he said. Vincent's voice almost sounded sympathetic. "Colonel, I thought you were supposed to be someplace else."

* * *

It was over.

The images completed, and phased out. Stephen held Chuck steady, so he wouldn't fall forward and hurt himself. He let his son's limp form slowly rest on the table. Chuck didn't say anything, but Stephen saw that his eyes were open, and moving. He was going to be all right.

Stephen began to gather the things that he hadn't already packed. He wouldn't say goodbye to Ellie. It was better this way. Chuck would go to her, and they would comfort each other, as they had always done. Then, his children would truly be able to live again. Without danger.

Stephen's eyes casually passed over his laptop. The progress of the Predator was being displayed. It wouldn't be long now. Stephen glanced at the coordinates he had set. They-

He blinked, then stepped closer to the laptop, staring at the coordinates.

"No," he whispered. Those weren't the- He dove forward and began to type. He wrote in the correct coordinates, and hit the Enter key.

Nothing happened.

"NO!" Stephen shouted.

He heard his front door open. That was impossible. His security should have notified him! He turned.

Roan Montgomery was standing in the doorway, and he was holding a gun. Stephen began to open his mouth.

The impact of the bullets drove all voice from him.

* * *

After-images still coursed in front of Chuck's eyes. He was half-conscious, trying to discern what was reality and what wasn't.

The way he felt – He had felt this way once before. Empty. He had been emptied. He tried to move. The best he could do was to turn his head, but he couldn't lift it off the table.

Chuck thought he saw his father lying on the floor. His shirt was a combination of blue and red splotches. A man who looked like Roan Montgomery was leaning over Dad. It looked like Roan was trying to put something into Dad's mouth.

Then, the man stood up. Chuck thought he seemed sad. Roan Montgomery spoke into his wrist. "We're clear. Come on in."

Wendell Wagner walked into the room sometime later. Chuck wasn't sure when this had happened. A minute? An hour?

"Well?" said Wagner, smiling. Chuck had never realized that Wagner's smile was distinctly… unpleasant.

"He's dead," said Roan. "Check him yourself, if you want."

"Don't mind if I do." Wagner leaned down and put his fingers on Dad's neck, while whistling. Nodding in satisfaction, Wagner then leaned over and pulled open Dad's shirt sleeve. Laughing excitedly, Wagner yanked. He was holding Dad's arm tech in his hand. "I've always wanted one of these." Wagner met Chuck's stare and grinned.

* * *

Vincent dug his fingers into the site of Colonel Casey's wound. The effect was that the Colonel yelled out that he was going to kill Vincent, then passed out, if only momentarily. That was good. Vincent had no illusions that he would be able to obtain any information from this man, so the best that he could hope for was to neutralize Casey long enough to drag him into the room. He reached under the Colonel's arms and pulled backwards. That immediately woke Casey up. He began to struggle a bit, but at least the initial efforts were feeble. Vincent was able to get Casey into the middle of the room, where he dropped him. Casey grunted when his head hit the floor, but his eyes remained open.

Vincent backed up to the window, peering out of it for just a moment. No sign that any Ring were stirring. Good. The package would arrive soon. Unfortunately, Vincent's attentions were now split. He didn't bother asking Casey who was with him, but knew that Agent Walker was somewhere and was likely making her approach even now. He hoped that she showed quickly, so he could take care of her, and get back to his primary focus. He pointed his pistol at the open door, and waited.

Casey began to talk. "Where's Roberts?"

Vincent didn't answer, of course. He kept his senses open, while considering the situation. Orion had said that Casey and Walker would be on the other side of town. That they were here suggested two possibilities. One, Orion had turned on him. That didn't seem likely. This strike, while damaging, would be insufficient to take out the Ring. Orion would continue to need him. The other option was that Orion had made a mistake. This didn't seem realistic either. In Vincent's lengthy experience, Orion had never made mistakes.

Vincent's eyes flitted momentarily to the laptop. Vincent had already closed it. He wished that he could take the time to contact Orion; check in with him. But once the package had been sent, there was to be no further contact until the later rendezvous, and Vincent couldn't afford the distraction anyway. His eyes were back to the front, briefly stopping to notice the Colonel's face.

Colonel Casey was looking at Vincent. He was smiling. Vincent's eyes registered the shadows in the room, and how they moved. He spun around, to find Agent Walker was outside the window, standing on the ledge.

She fired before he could.

* * *

Good thing that they had GPS monitors on each other. Sarah had been on the floor above when she heard the shot. She knew that a frontal attack was unlikely to work. She had counted on Vincent not expecting that she might approach from the outside of the building. After all, Casey had given her the idea when he had rescued Chuck from the Fulcrum training facility. Too bad that she hadn't had an elevating platform to work with, but even so, it hadn't been difficult for her to climb down, then to shimmy across to the right point.

She had shot his gun hand, and his left thigh. It was enough. Vincent had gone down. The glass hadn't entirely shattered. She had to wait while an injured Casey stood up and opened the window for her.

"Nice," he said.

"I got your back," she replied in a matter-of-fact tone.

"Yup."

She jumped down into the room, next to the rifle Smith had set up. She looked from the weapon to the wounded enemy.

"Hunting, Vincent?"

Smith stared out at her. "Hunting Ring, Agent Walker. We're on the same side."

"Huh," said Casey, "Sure we are."

"I didn't kill you, Colonel. It would have been easy to do so."

"It would be unprofessional not to," Casey said in a sneer.

"Quite," said Vincent, "Unless the target is an important fellow soldier in the fight."

Sarah looked at Casey, and vice-versa. She crouched down next to Vincent. "OK, we're on the same side? Tell me where I can find Jill Roberts."

"Dr. Roberts is dead."

"Yeah, right."

"Shut up, Casey." Sarah had studied Vincent Smith's file. He didn't easily give up information, but when he did, he wasn't known to lie. "How did she die, Vincent?"

Vincent Smith smiled grimly. "She was executed by Orion."

"Oh that's bull-"

Sarah put her hand up to halt Casey's speech. She never took her eyes off Vincent. She opened her mouth, but no sound came out.

Vincent never wavered in his eye contact. "We are on the same side."

"We never wanted Jill Roberts dead," said Sarah.

"Didn't you?" Sarah said nothing in reply. Neither did Casey. Vincent kept talking. "Across the street is a meeting with members of the Ring. Orion and I are taking them out. One of his Predators should be here at any moment, and will kill them. That is, if none of them noticed your impromptu scaling of the wall."

Sarah stood up. She went back to the window and looked across the street. She couldn't see anybody, but maybe they were all in the building that Vincent was talking about. She looked up toward the skyline. She could see a plane from off in the distance. Coming closer. Closer. Its trajectory….

"Casey," she choked out. "Run."

"What?"

"RUN!!!"

She jumped over Vincent, past Casey. She glanced back to see him at her heels. Behind him, Vincent Smith was struggling to stand up, and was looking out the window.

"Stairs?" shouted Casey.

"Fire escape!" She was at the end of the hall, wrenching open the window. She was out in the afternoon air. Climbing down. Casey was above her. She started to feel the building shake.

They were three floors from the ground when the world exploded.

* * *

Damon Harris smiled.

"Checkmate.


	4. Chapter 4

**Hi everybody! I'm going to save most of my comments for the end, but let me just say once again, I very much appreciate all the people who have read this story. And for those of you who have provided reviews, you gave me the confidence and desire to continue. I have had a lot of fun, and I hope you have too. **

**Thanks to my wife for cheering me on and editing my stuff from beginning to end. She's always supported my interests, and gamely listened to me go on and on about them. I am so lucky to have her. **

**Thanks to Anon for providing some early constructive criticism, and for then becoming beta editor. I'm also thrilled that Anon brought me into the Chuck Google Group community.**

**I do not own Chuck.**

**

* * *

**

"_Bang! You're dead!" said her little brother._

"_No, I'm not!" she cried in outrage. _

"_Are too. I shot you. Right between the eyes. Fall over."_

"_Nuh-uh! I was behind the wall. The wall blocks bullets."_

"_It does not!"_

"_Yes it does. You missed me."_

"_No, I didn't!"_

"_Yes you did, you turd-brain!"_

"_DAD! Ellie called me a turd-brain! And she won't fall over dead."_

"_Eleanor," she heard her father mutter from his desk, "Don't call your brother names. Now, be a good girl and fall over dead."_

"_Dad!" she cried, "Walls stop bullets!"_

"_No, they don't, Eleanor." _

"_Ooooooohhhh!!!" she howled, in frustration. Chuck, the little shit, was smirking at her. "I don't want to play anymore."_

"_That's your choice," Dad said.

* * *

_

Eleanor Faye Bartowski stood rigid against a wall in her home. A niggling thought entered her brain that if she could just get _behind_ the wall, she'd be safe.

But walls didn't stop bullets.

There were eight men and one woman in her living room. Two other men were around somewhere. There was the man with one arm who had been in front when she had opened the door. He had gone through the back to the cottage. A few minutes later, a smiling man in his twenties went after him.

She didn't know any of these people. Three of them had their guns trained on both her and Devon.

Devon was on the floor, his right eye swelling up, his right cheek broken. One of the men had pistol-whipped him. Devon hadn't done anything, made any rash movements. He simply tried to reason with them. Now, he was on his back, his head at her feet. One hand of his was lightly touching her calf. He didn't appear scared. He never appeared scared. He simply looked at her, and his eyes and touch said, "We're going to get out of this. We'll be OK. I love you."

Ellie wanted to believe him.

She had worked at Westside Hospital with Devon for years. It was a regular occurrence for her to see victims of violent crime brought into Emergency. She saw the results of violence, but she never thought she or the ones she loved would ever be the victims.

In the last two years, something had changed. She had been one of a number of hostages held at the Buy More. Very recently, she had been attacked in her home by a… burglar? To this day, she hadn't understood what that whole event had been about. She had gotten off lucky with a concussion then. Was she going to be so lucky now? Was Devon? And what about Chuck and her father? The two strange men had been going towards _them_.

She couldn't even ask these people why they were here. The Asian woman had told them to keep their mouths shut. She and Devon were complying.

She heard the sliding door open again, and a moment later the two men were back. They were dragging a limp body between them, but when they reached the living room, they let him slump to the floor.

"CHUCK!" she yelled.

The same man who had hurt Devon scowled and moved toward her, his pistol brought up in an arc. She watched his arm with the gun begin to descend.

The silver-haired man with one arm stepped between her and the attacker, and said, "No." The man with the gun visibly bristled at the challenge, but he backed off, just the same.

The man who had interfered turned around to face her. "I'm very sorry, Dr. Bartowski, for the violence done to your husband, and the threats to both of you. I assure you that in spite of how it appears, your brother is unhurt." His voice was soothing. There was something about it. The man's facial wounds aside – He appeared worse than Devon – if this had been any other kind of situation, he almost might seem… charming.

Her line of thought was cut off as the smiling man, said, in a nasty tone, "Too bad the same can't be said of her father."

The man in front of her closed his eyes and shook his head. Ellie was having a hard time keeping her footing. "What… what does he mean?"

The man opened his eyes and his expression was troubled. He put his one strong hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry, Dr. Bartowski. I'm afraid your father is dead."

Her breath left her. She stared at the man who had given her this horrible news, and all she could do was watch helplessly as he….

Winked at her?

He pulled her into a hug. She was so shocked she didn't resist. She just stood there in his embrace. She felt his breath at her ear, and heard a very soft whisper. "When the time is right, Eleanor, run."

He let her go again, and gingerly leaned her body back against the wall to give her support. Then he turned around, and spoke to the smiling man, "Orion is dead, you have the De-Intersect, and you have Charles. You don't need these two."

The smiling man's smile didn't reach his eyes or his voice. "Agent Montgomery, although you know how much I admire your opinion, I'm going to have to disagree here. We need hostages to help Mr. Bartowski cooperate and now with Casey and Walker dead –

Ellie felt her heart break. _John Casey. SARAH? _She wasn't the only one that registered the words. Chuck must have woken up at some point. She heard him sob.

The smiling man stopped what he was saying and looked down. "Ah, he's awake!" The man leaned down and pulled up Chuck's head by the hair, "We've got plans for you, Chuck!"

"Wendell," the one called Montgomery said quietly, "Show some class, would you?"

The man named Wendell let Chuck's head fall to the ground and stood up to glare at Montgomery. "You don't give the orders, here, Rooo-an! I'm in charge, and I'll say-"

Wendell was interrupted by a beeping sound.

The men all looked at each other, confused. They began to check their pockets, perhaps to see if it was their cellular phones. Wendell was the one who finally seemed to find the source.

He pulled down his shirt sleeve, and began to stare at some kind of strange glowing armband that he was wearing.

"Where did you get that?" said the Asian woman, her eyes widening.

"I got it off of Orion, I-"

That was the point where "Rooo-an" Montgomery grabbed Wendell and threw him bodily toward the sofa by the window, where another gunman was standing. The two men collided in a tangle of limbs. They were yelling profanities, but just below those, the sound of the beeping could be heard. It was speeding up, getting louder.

Wendell brought the armband to his face to stare at it.

Then, he exploded.

* * *

Every part of her hurt. Her feet, hands, back. Everything hurt. That was good. No paralysis.

Sarah opened her eyes, and coughed. No blood coming out of her mouth. Even better.

She was able to stand up and walked a few tentative steps. She saw the twisted metal of the fire escape. It hadn't fallen on top of them. If it had, she wouldn't be standing.

There was mortar and glass everywhere, including all over her, but the foundation had stood, the bottom part of the building had stayed intact. For now at least. She had to find Casey, and get them both out of here, especially if Vincent had been right and the Ring were across the street. Not to mention another serious problem.

A Predator. They had been attacked by a Predator. Sent by Orion. Orion who may have executed Jill. Orion who was alone with Chuck right now. She pulled out her cellular phone. It hadn't survived the fall.

Casey. Casey would have his phone. They'd call Chuck. They'd warn him, they'd-

Sarah stopped.

Colonel John Casey was lying in some rubble, flat on his back, his eyes closed.

A shard of metal appeared to be jutting out of his forehead.

* * *

The sight of Wendell Wagner dying horribly was the most beautiful thing Roan Montgomery had ever seen, and he had seen a _lot_ of beauty. The fact that Wagner had taken one of his thugs with him was a much-appreciated bonus.

The rest of the Ring agents appeared to be in shock. Sloppy. Wagner should have chosen them better.

Cho recovered first. She yelled to Roan, "You bastard!" and drew on him. He crossed the distance, and backhanded her. She went down. The benefits of having only one arm; enemies underestimated you.

The rest of the goon squad were starting to wake from their state, but then, another welcome occurrence happened to startle them anew.

Suddenly all the walls and the ceiling of the room came alive. On each, computer symbols coalesced to form a face that Roan recognized. He smiled. Stephen had worn the vest, as he always did. Roan had worried over that, and over the exact amount of Tetrodotoxin to use. Timing was everything, and of course, not permanently stopping Stephen's heart. And if it had been anybody else but Wendell, they would have caught what Roan had been doing.

_You no longer have me under your thumb, you evil shit. _

Roan would have liked nothing better than to put more holes into Wendell's body, but right now, he needed to be more concerned with the deadly living.

He turned quickly and shot another Ring agent in the face. _Three down._

Roan's glance fell on the young couple. They were frozen, terrified.

"RUN!" he yelled.

That did it. Eleanor grabbed her husband's hand and began pulling him up.

Around him, Roan felt puffs of air. He saw another goon grab his neck and collapse. _Four. _

The other goons dived to the floor. One of them was slithering toward the couple. Roan opened his mouth to warn them, but he didn't get the chance.

Charles Bartowski was suddenly on top of the thug, grabbing the killer's head and smashing it to the floor repeatedly, while yelling, "Get out of here, Ellie!" _Five._

Roan smiled. He turned to find his next target and came face to face with Mei-Ling's gun.

_Oh well, _he thought, good-naturedly.

Then, he died.

* * *

Chuck Bartowski barely had time to register the sight of Roan Montgomery being shot in the head at point-blank range.

_Sarah _was dead.

He had thought that he had wanted to kill because of Jill's betrayal. He hadn't. He realized that now. That was hurt and guilt, and whatever other emotions he had swirling inside him.

Now, Chuck wanted to kill.

He slipped the gun free from the man he had just knocked unconscious. He flipped over. Another goon was coming up fast. He had apparently chosen to run the gamut of darts.

Chuck felt the absence of the Intersect. Any of his previous feats were lost to him. But it doesn't take much to shoot a man in the chest at point blank range. Chuck fired and the goon went down.

Chuck turned to find another target, but he suddenly found the gun flying out of his hand, by a kick. A woman's kick.

Mei-Ling.

Chuck tried to fight her. He could still feel some of the reflexes there. After all, he had practiced all this time to get his body in tune with the Intersect. There had to be some residual skills he could use.

He managed to get two good punches in before she knocked him unconscious.

* * *

The front door was blocked. So was the hall that would take them to the panic room. Their only point of egress was the kitchen. If they went through there they could get around and get into the panic room that way.

Devon ignored the pain in his face and pushed Ellie ahead.

There were two guys on their heels. The guys had guns and were going to shoot his wife. Not awesome. At all.

Devon turned suddenly the moment they hit the kitchen floor and clobbered one of the men with his best right cross. He was about to do the same to the other but a sudden movement from behind him caught his eye.

Devon turned just in time to watch Ellie fall screaming through a hole that had suddenly opened up in the floor.

"Ellie?" The trap door closed.

Devon felt a deep pain, as this time, the gun butt smashed him across the skull.

The last thing he registered before all sense left was the thug leaning over the closed trap door and saying, "Uh…. We got a problem here!"

* * *

Damon Harris couldn't believe this. The game had been over! Won!

He had overridden both Orion's original directions of where Walker and Casey would go on their mission, AND the controls of the Predator.

Plus, he had turned off all the security at Orion's headquarters. That should have been it!

Wagner had said that after that Orion would be dead and it wouldn't matter. Apparently, Wagner had been mistaken, because Orion had finally figured out that he was being messed with, and had managed to activate backup security measures that Damon couldn't disable.

Damon wasn't going to take the fall for this. He had done his job.

And he damn well deserved his bonus.

* * *

_Well, this has certainly turned into an intolerable mess_, mused Mei-Ling.

Wagner had blown it. The man had been arrogant, certainly, but she had never imagined he would have quite reached this level of incompetence, and now people were dead.

After removing the tranq dart, she saw that Barnes was still breathing steadily. Abrams was moaning, but was already unstrapping himself from his bullet-proof vest. Apparently, Chuck Bartowski hadn't known to go for the head. Thomas had been out only briefly after the brother-in-law punched him. Armstead might need some more tending. Chuck had been pretty vicious with the head smashing. She supposed she couldn't blame him.

She would still require reinforcements. "Batty, Gomez," she spoke into her phone, "Help me get the target in the van, then stick around for clean-up."

It would take some time to find the entrance to Orion's little hideout, so the job could be finished. She wasn't going to wait around though. Chuck needed to be secured. And the De-Intersect. At least Wagner hadn't had that piece of tech on him when he blew up. He had handed it to her upon re-entering the house.

"What about the jock, Miss Cho?"

"Keep him alive for now. You'll need him as a hostage to convince Orion and his daughter to come out."

They nodded.

Batty and Gomez helped her with the transfer. They tied up Chuck securely, and put him in the back.

Mei-Ling nodded to them, gave final instructions, got in the van, and took off.

* * *

Reality had left Ellie some time ago, and now she was just trying to go along for the ride, hoping it stopped somewhere.

She had fallen through a rabbit hole (in her kitchen!) and instead of a rabbit, there was her father, alive, though his shirt looked like he had spilled red paint on it. (_It has to be paint; please let it be paint.) _

She had screamed when she fell, but she landed on a mat, and she wasn't even hurt. It had been a soft mat.

Now, her father was leading her down a strange dark hallway.

"Dad?" She couldn't help noticing that he was breathing in huffs.

"Just a bit winded," he said.

"What is this, Dad?" she asked, in her semi-dreamlike state.

"New home features, Eleanor. Every house is going to have them soon."

"Oh," she said, nodding. Then she said, "There's a panic room. We should go to the panic room."

"Panic room's upstairs, Eleanor. Besides, I can guarantee you that where we're going now is even more secure."

There was one doorway in the hall, as far as she could see.

He ushered her into it, and closed the door behind them.

It was a white room. The tiles on the wall, ceiling and floor appeared to be strange white screens. There was a desk with a computer in the middle of the room.

"Dad?" she said, confused.

"I needed a bigger office, Eleanor," he said. Then he began to type on the computer.

Several of the screens on the wall across from her activated. They showed different parts of the house. They showed the men who had invaded, including a couple of new ones. They showed Devon on the floor unconscious. She stared at her husband.

"I don't see, Charles," Dad said. "The woman isn't there, either. They've taken him."

"Why?" said Ellie in a flat tone.

"I can't go into it Eleanor." Then he began to mutter to himself. "Can't use a drone. They could use it against me, again. I've got to do it. I've got to."

Ellie was starting to gather her senses about her. "Dad, they've got Devon and Chuck. We've got to give ourselves up."

Her father seemed to be breathing louder. "We can't do that, Eleanor. They will kill us."

"Then what do we do?"

Dad walked over to her, and handed her some sunglasses. "Wear these." Then he walked back to the computer desk, muttering again, "It's a good thing I kept an extra intact."

She looked at him. He tried to give her a reassuring smile. "Put the glasses on, Eleanor. You're about to see some magic."

Ellie put on the glasses.

Her father began to type some more into the computer. He stared at the screen. Then he looked back up at her. He was grimacing. Wheezing. Sweating.

"Dad?" she whispered.

"Oh," he croaked, "This isn't…good."

Then he fell forward on his face.

* * *

Stephen felt Eleanor turn him over. His breathing was labored. His stomach roiled. His left arm was killing him.

_Too much stress. I'm sure being shot in the chest, plus the Tetrodotoxin didn't help either._

"Dad," she said, as she checked his pulse, "You are having a heart attack. We've got to get you to a hospital."

"Eleanor," he whispered. "You need… You need to escape."

"Dad?"

Her image began to fade out. He let his eyes close.

A sharp slap across his face roused him.

"DON'T YOU FUCKING DO THIS TO ME!" his daughter shrieked. "I have no idea what is going on up there, but you are not going to die. Where's the phone?" she stayed with him but was looking around the sterile room frantically. "We'll call an ambulance and the police."

"No," he groaned. "No phone. No police. Wouldn't be able to handle it."

"Then you and I are handling it," Ellie said. "We are solving this. Devon is not dying. Chuck is not dying. You are not dying, and _I_ am not dying, do you understand? You tell me how to solve this problem, because Dad, I am making a choice to live!"

He blinked. "What did you say?"

"You heard me," she said with absolute determination. He saw it in her face and in her tone. But beyond that, the word that she had said….

Choice.

_Oh my God, _Stephen thought. _Oh my dear God._

"Eleanor," he said, "Would you do anything to save us? Them?"

"Yes," she said, simply.

"_Anything_, Eleanor?"

She nodded. "Anything."

Stephen reached out, and caressed his daughter's cheek. Then, he pulled the sunglasses away from her, and placed them over his own eyes.

"Help me get to the chair."

"That's not a good idea, Dad," she said as he was getting to his knees.

"Help me to the chair."

She did so.

Orion typed the commands into the computer, stared at his child one more time, and said, "Watch."

He pressed the button.

* * *

**To be continued in Season 4.**

**What, had I given anybody the impression that my story was ending here? **

**I love cliffhangers. Ever since I saw a season finale of – please don't laugh – **_**Falcon Crest**_**, where a plane went down with most of the cast aboard, I thought, "OK, that is just wrong. I've gotta wait 3-4 months to find out what happened?" Or the famous (or infamous) Moldavian Massacre season finale of _Dynasty_ where they left the entire cast piled on top of each other after everybody had been shot in a coup! (That was the most over the top one.) My favorite show ever, _Twin Peaks_, had a brilliant cliffhanger season 1 finale, then a cliffhanger season 2 finale, which would never be resolved, of course, because that was also the series finale. (I'm still praying that somehow they'll bring the series back 25 years from the original.)**

**So, if I haven't pissed everybody off into never reading my stuff again, I do plan to do a Season 4. Or, if not a full season, at least, I plan on actually completing my story. I don't plan on waiting 3-4 months to start either, but I do want to take at least a brief hiatus. I also hope we will get an actual Chuck S4, because if the show goes away, I'm guessing that Chuck fan fiction might have less of an audience, though I could be mistaken. **

**A few comments about my actions:**

**Since, I believe, the second chapter of Postcard, I knew how I wanted my S3 to end. Well, the last bit, anyway.**

**Special shout-out to Course Jester. CJ may not have been the only one to notice my original hint about Ellie back in First Handler, but he was the only one who mentioned it in the reviews, and he kept bringing it back up, letting me know that he hadn't forgotten. I appreciate that, CJ! You held me accountable.**

**I hadn't been sure on whether or not I was going to go through with successfully De-Intersecting Chuck. There will be a payoff to that, though.**

**I already talked about Roan a bit previously. I went the gamut with him. Should he be innocent? Should he have been the actual big bad? Hopefully, y'all liked the compromise. **

**I hemmed and hawed about revealing the fate of one cast member, and debated it with my editors. I decided to leave that character's fate obscure until S4. I just hope that you don't all leave in droves because I did that. (I'm sure you can figure out about who I speak.)**

**Anybody still here? OK! Once again, thanks all for reading. Please review, I beg of you! The more I hear from you, the more likely I am to get back to the keyboard that much quicker! **

**Thanks all! **


	5. Chuck Vs the Epilogue

**Well, I hadn't intended to abandon my story, but then, who does? I said I was going to do a Season 4. Alas, lack of continued inspiration coupled with new real life conflicts have rendered me false. **

**At the very least, I wanted to have my final words be this little (and I do mean LITTLE) epilogue, which clarifies the fate of one of our regulars. I don't consider this a cheat, as I was considering having this be the last scene in Tomorrow, anyway, but had decided to have it be the first scene of my S4. However, since I won't be DOING a S4, here it is. **

**Thanks to everybody who has ever read and especially to those who have reviewed my stuff. You have been very gracious, and I am so thankful, and regretful that I have left things on a cliffhanger. **

**I asked folks in my GoogleGroup if anybody wanted to take over this story for me. Alas, nobody wanted to, and I understand that. If you're going to write, usually you want to do your own stuff. However, I do extend the offer to any of the readers here as well. I'd be happy to tell you where I was planning on going and you can take or leave it as you please.**

**No? Didn't think so. Ah well.**

**Thanks again to my wonderful editors, my wife and Anon, who invited me into the Chuck community and has been a great friend. Thanks, man.**

**In the meantime, I'll be around, and maybe at some point, I'll jump back into the game.**

**

* * *

**

Sarah Walker didn't move. She just stared at him.

They started as enemies.

Then grudging associates.

He became a reliable partner, and to the surprise of both of them, a friend.

Here, he was, at peace. This wasn't him. It couldn't be. Casey couldn't die like this; struck down by a random piece of shrapnel. He was above this. He was indestruct-

Casey opened his eyes.

"AH!" She bit down on her tongue, stifling the scream.

His eyes shifted to her. They just stared at each other for a moment. He sat up.

Then he stood. The piece of metal was still sticking out of his forehead. Blood from the wound streamed down on the insides of both eyes. He blinked.

"What?" he asked, in an annoyed tone.

* * *

**And, well, that's it! **

**This is based on a theory about Casey I developed in Chuck Vs. the Tango. The theory appears disproved by subsequent episodes and even in my own writing, when I was careless.**

**However, it is what it is. Anybody want to make a guess? And no, it isn't that Casey is a robot, undead, or somehow not alive. **


End file.
